Every First Time
by MargaritaVille108
Summary: This series of one-shots gives Ginny Weasley's point of view, the first times she sees Harry Potter each year.
1. Chapter 1

This story is composed of a few one-shots of every time Ginny first sees Harry for the year. In this story, I used excerpts from _Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone_ Chapter 6 "The Journey from Platform Nine and Three Quarters." Any quotes taken from that are bolded. Please review if you have the time!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. The credit belongs to the fantastical J.K. Rowling.

Every First Time

The Black-Haired Boy

"C'mon, boys we're going to be late!" warned Mrs. Weasley as she weaved her way through the hundreds of muggle commuters in Kings Cross Station.

"You say that every year," sighed Fred.

"Maybe I'll just keep you behind at home," she replied sternly not even taking time to stop and scold him.

"Yeah, Ginny could go in your place," laughed George. At this suggestion, Ginny's eyes lit up with hope.

"No," said Mrs. Weasley quickly. "And will you stop bothering your sister?"  
>"Well you already said we can't bother Percy," George began.<p>

"Or Ron," Fred finished.

"So who are we supposed to bother?"

"You won't be bothering anyone in detention," Percy muttered under his breath.

"What's that Perce?" Fred pressed his ear as close to Percy's face as possible. "Put us in detention?"

"And we're in your own house," said George.

"Shame," Fred shook his head.

"None of the Gryffindors are going to be too happy about that," finished George.

"Enough!" Mrs. Weasley gave her final warning, her anger forcing her to tighten her grip on Ginny's hand.

As the family continued through the station a large group of muggles walked toward them, going in the opposite direction, not taking any consideration that they were trying to stay together. As each passed they looked strangely at each Weasley and their various trunks and owl. Mrs. Weasley sighed, "Always like this**…packed with muggles, of course-"** She slowed as the wall between platforms nine and ten became visible**. "Now, what's the platform number?"**

"**Nine and three-quarters!"** Ginny squealed happily, **"Mom, can't I go…"**

"**You're not old enough, Ginny, now be quiet."** Ginny let go of her mother's hand and proceeded to cross her arms angrily. **"All right, Percy, you go first."**

Stopping her sulking a bit to watch her older brother, Ginny scooted closer to her mother so she could see Percy go through the barrier onto the platform. As he disappeared, Ginny felt a jolt of excitement. She couldn't wait until she got to rush through that barrier and finally be on platform nine and three-quarters. She had seen it many times before. She went with her mother almost every see to see her brothers off but, when she was a Hogwarts student it would be different. She wouldn't be stuck clinging to her mother's hand. She would get to ride the train.

"**Fred, you next,"** said Mrs. Weasley.

"**I'm not Fred, I'm George,"** said George positioning his trunk. ** "Honestly, woman, you call yourself our mother? Can't you tell I'm George?" **

"Who cares who you are?" Ginny thought to herself, "Just go through the barrier so I can on the platform."

"**Sorry, George, dear,"** Mrs. Weasley apologized.

"**Only joking, I am Fred."** Fred smirked and pushed his cart at full speed toward the barrier. For two seconds Ginny hoped he'd crash. It'd be funny if the joke was on him for once. Of course, if he crashed that would mean the barrier had been sealed, and that couldn't happen. George followed quickly behind, giving Ron a slap on the back of the head. He was gone before Mrs. Weasley could instruct him to go or Ron could tell on him. Ginny rolled her eyes. _Why couldn't she go? She was clearly more mature than Fred and George and Ron had been scared out of sleep the night before by their scary tales of the school so he might not even want to go. She could go in his place. She knew what to do. She'd been watching it for years. Ever since she could remember, she had been coming to Kings Cross Station to watch her brothers go off to school without her. It was the same every year…_

"**Excuse me,"** a thin, dark-haired boy with glasses approached Mrs. Weasley, Ron, and Ginny.

_He wasn't the same…_

Ginny stared at him. He was different. For years, she had seen nothing, but freckles and read hair. This boy had messy black hair, glasses, what looked like some sort of scar hiding behind his fringe, and the greenest eyes Ginny had ever seen.

"**Hello, dear,"** greeted Mrs. Weasley, **"First time at Hogwarts? Ron's new, too."** At Harry's look towards him, Ron managed a small smile.

"**Yes,"** answered the boy. **"The thing is-,"** he hesitated seeming a bit apprehensive, **"the thing is, I don't know how to-"**

"**How to get onto the platform?" **Mrs. Weasley finished his sentence for him. **"Not to worry," **she smiled warmly. Ginny always appreciated how kind her mother could be. **"All you have to do is walk straight at the barrier between platforms nine and ten. Don't stop and don't be scared you'll crash into it, that's very important. Best do it at a bit of a run if you're nervous. Go on, go now before Ron."**

"**Err—okay,"** he answered, clearly confused. He stood there briefly for a moment, preparing himself. Ginny noticed his grip on his trolley tighten just as he began walking. With each step he picked up speed and, in a moment, he was gone. Ginny looked up to her mother, who was still smiling.

"Sweet boy," she said.

"Who was he, Mummy?" Ginny asked.

"Probably a muggle-born," she answered, "but I must say, he looked awfully familiar, sort of like…" she seemed to drift off for a moment… "No, it couldn't be. Oh!" she caught a glimpse of the clock on the wall. "Hurry, Ron!" Ron raced at the barrier and disappeared through. Mrs. Weasley grabbed Ginny's hand and pulled. "Let's go see them off, dear."

When Ginny and Mrs. Weasley arrived, Ron was waiting for them on the platform.

"Where did Fred and George get off too?" she asked Ron. He shrugged. **"Fred, George, are you there?"** she called into the open door of the train. Ginny strained around her mother trying to get a look inside. She was curious as to what happened to the black-haired boy. Unfortunately, he was nowhere in sight.

"**Aaah, has ickle Ronnie got somefink on his nosie**?" Fred's voice caught Ginny's attention by making fun of Ron as Mrs. Weasley tried to rub dirt off his nose.

"**Shut up," said Ron.**

"**Where's Percy?"** asked Mrs. Weasley craning her neck around to see if she could spot him.

"**He's coming now,"** groaned George.

Ginny watched Percy, somewhat embarrassed, as he almost strutted up to him. It was amazing how quickly he had changed into his school robes.

"**Can't stay long, Mother…"** Ginny stopped listening knowing that he was going to go on about his being a prefect. She continued to stare along the compartment windows in hopes of spotting the black-haired boy. For a brief second, she thought she spotted him. _Was he looking at her and her family?_

"**Guess who we met on the train?"** said George calling Ginny's attention. It must have been someone interesting or they wouldn't have bothered to mention it, unless it was someone who knew her dad, which was nice, but not very exciting.

"**You know that black-haired boy who was near us at the station? Know who he is?" **Ginny was fully invested in George's information now. _Who was this boy? Did she know him? Did he know her family?_ "Please don't be related to the Malfoys," she thought to herself. She had listened to her dad long enough to know the Malfoys were trouble and her dad said that he would have a son going to school soon. Then she reminded herself of the pointed face and white blond hair of Mr. Malfoy and her father's saying that his son looked just like him. That was a relief.

"**Who?"** asked Mrs. Weasley, also interested.

"**Harry Potter!"**

Ginny wouldn't be surprised if her jaw dropped to the floor. Harry Potter, the Harry Potter was on the Hogwarts Express.

"**Oh, Mum, can I go on the train and see him, Mum, eh please…" she begged. **

"**You've already seen him, Ginny, and the poor boy isn't something you goggle at in a zoo. Is he really Fred? How do you know?"**

As Fred explained how he knew the boy was Harry Potter, Ginny thought about what her mother said. She already got to see him. She was feet away from him—feet away from Harry Potter, the most famous wizard in the wizarding world. She knew he was about her age, but never thought she'd ever meet him. She never thought he'd be so polite and so…muggle-like. Of course, no one had heard much about Harry Potter's whereabouts since the day he stopped You-Know-Who. _Maybe he didn't know much about the wizarding world either._

The train whistle sounded. Ron, Fred, and George hurried onto the train. Once inside, they leaned out the window so Mrs. Weasley could kiss them goodbye. Ginny started crying. She hated crying, especially in front of people, but she couldn't help it. As much as her brothers annoyed her, she hated saying good-bye to them. She especially hated that she would be stuck at the Burrow all by herself while her brothers were all of having fun at Hogwarts.

"**Don't, Ginny, we'll send you loads of owls,"** Fred tried to console her.

"**We'll send you a Hogwarts' toilet seat,"** added George. Ginny laughed, while Mrs. Weasley scolded him.

The train began to pull away. As it slowly picked up pace, Ginny chased it, **half laughing, half crying** until she couldn't keep up with it. She wiped the remaining tears from her eyes and returned to her mother. Mrs. Weasley placed a comforting arm around Ginny's shoulder. "They'll be back soon…and you'll be off to school even sooner than you think."

"I know," Ginny nodded as they exited back through the barrier.

"Well, at least we will have an interesting story to tell your father," said Mrs. Weasley as they walked toward their exit. "We got to meet Harry Potter." Immediately Ginny's thoughts returned to Harry Potter. _She got to meet Harry Potter._ Even though she knew he was young, she never pictured him going to school. Whenever she thought of Harry Potter, even though she knew he was just a baby when he defeated the You-Know-Who she thought of someone much bigger, broader, confident, not thin and messy -haired with glasses. Harry Potter was nothing like she imagined he'd be. He was much better.


	2. Chapter 2

Every First Time

A Guest at the Burrow

SLAM!

Ginny abruptly awoke to what sounded like to kitchen door slamming. "She must have found them," Ginny thought to herself. Earlier that morning, Mrs. Weasley had popped her head in Ginny's room asking, a bit frantically, if she knew where her brothers were, to which Ginny responded with a careless, "no," and went back to sleep. Judging by the slam of the door, Ginny figured that Mrs. Weasley had located the boys and was not too pleased about whatever they were doing. It must have been very bad because Mrs. Weasley was often angry at Fred and George, but not usually with that much force so early in the morning. Not wanting to go downstairs and join the ruckus, Ginny remained in bed catching every few words her mother screamed.

"CAR..."

"FATHER GETS…"

"PERCY'S BOOK…"

Ginny spent a few moments trying to piece those three words together. "They could have taken dad's car," Ginny thought to herself. Fred and George, unknown to their parents, had taken the car a few times before, though Ginny found it odd they would invite Ron on one of their excursions. She listened and heard the kitchen door open again, her mother's angry footsteps accompanied by a group of others. Pots, pans, and silverware began banging together notifying Ginny that Mrs. Weasley was, very angrily, making breakfast. She waited a few more minutes before getting out of bed. Her mother would be calling her for breakfast soon anyway and though she didn't want to be present for the brunt of the confrontation between her mother and brothers, she didn't want to miss all of it.

Still in her nightdress, she sleepily walked down the stairs towards the kitchen where it now sounded like everyone had started eating. As she walked down the steps she heard George say, "They were starving him, Mum!"

"Starving who?" Ginny thought thinking perhaps her brothers had gone out a returned with some sort of neglected animal. Stepping into the kitchen she noticed that her mother was hovering over a certain seat at the table. It took Ginny a half a second to realize who was sitting in it. Her mother was buttering Harry Potter's bread! Shocked Ginny let out a squeal causing all eyes in the kitchen, including the stunningly green eyes of Harry, to fall on her. Not knowing what else to do, she ran out of the kitchen and back to her room.

After reentering her room, Ginny threw herself on her bed, her faced still flushed from what had just happened. "How stupid am I?" she scolded herself. Harry Potter, the Harry Potter was sitting in her kitchen and she just made a complete idiot out of herself.

"What does he think of me now?" she asked herself sadly. Then a horrifying question came into her mind…_What were her brothers saying about her? _She had left Harry Potter downstairs with her brothers, her brothers who had heard her talk about him quite often. She had been completely fascinated by him ever since she first saw him on the Hogwarts Express. Fred and George always said she was interested because he was famous, but, after the initial moments of shock of being so close to such a famous wizard, it wore off. It wasn't that. He was just…so…interesting, so different looking from the red hair and freckles she had always been so used to. All of Ron's stories about school had done nothing, but interest her more. Harry played Quidditch—seeker. He was the youngest seeker in a century. He had to be amazing. He caught his first snitch in his mouth and managed to hold on to a bewitched broom. He won Gryffindor 60 house points. He faced You-Know-Who again and beat him. He jumped on top of a troll.

Ginny's face flushed again thinking of all the things her brothers could be saying about her and how she constantly talked about Harry. He probably would think she was weird or stupid. Sadly, she reminded herself that in her moment in the kitchen, she didn't even really get a good look at him. Of course he would at Hogwarts so she could see him, but she was still a year younger and he probably wouldn't want anything to do with her.

Ginny stopped her moping o listen to the conversation taking place in the kitchen. Her mother was talking about this famous wizard named Gilderoy Lockhart who did everything from defeating werewolves to de-gnoming (for which Mrs. Weasley was currently praising him). Ginny listened for the boys to leave the kitchen. When she heard nothing else, but the dishes being cleaned she silently slipped back down the stairs. She peered her head into the kitchen to find no one, but her mother standing at the sink muttering, irritated, about discipline and misbehavior. _Did Harry go outside to de-gnome the garden as well? Or did he go home? If he didn't go home, how long would he be staying?_ It then dawned on Ginny, that she had quite a while until school started. If Harry was staying with them she couldn't spend the remainder of the summer locked in her room to avoid making an idiot out of herself in front of him again. She would just have to get used to having him around the house. She would just have to be careful to not be clumsy or talk to too much. Unfortunately after his time at the Burrow, she probably wouldn't have much to do with him during school.


	3. Chapter 3

Every First Time

"Hello"

"Now are we sure everyone has everything?" asked Mrs. Weasley as she, Percy, Fred, George, and Ginny made their way through the streets of Diagon Alley towards the leaky Cauldron.

"Mum, you've asked us about twenty times," remarked Fred. Mrs. Weasley scowled.

"Well you try having five children at school and see how you are!" she replied angrily. "Plus, with all that time in Egypt I just feel like I've lost so much time."

"We're all fine, Mum," said Ginny. "We've checked the lists several times."

"I think your father said he would be down at the bar," said Mrs. Weasley as they entered the Leaky Cauldron. Sure enough, there was Mr. Weasley seated at the bar reading The Daily Prophet. Next to him was Ron and Hermione and…Ginny could feel her cheeks turning pink and tried willing herself to keep her normal color. Sitting next to Ron, was Harry Potter.

Ginny knew this would happen. She was going to see Harry again sometime. He was Ron's best friend. Things however between Harry and her were a bit awkward since he saved her life the year previous, not to mention the things she wrote about him in the diary and the horrible Valentine's Day incident. Of course she was never going to bring that up. She knew what she was going to say. She had practiced this many times in her head, although she thought it would be on the train or…any other time, but now.

"Say anything," she told herself as they walked closer to the bar. "Hi Harry, how are you? Hey Harry, have a good summer? Harry, it's good to see you again," she suggested to herself. Finally they were close enough for a greeting.

"Hello," she said not even able to look at him. Her cheeks burned. She hoped if he had even heard her that he couldn't see how red they were turning. Well that was it. All that planning, all the practicing, all the build-up in her mind and all she could mutter was, "hello"—very impressive.

Luckily, there was no other time for any exchange of words because Percy reintroduced himself to Harry. If Ginny weren't so focused on not embarrassing herself, she would have made a comment. Not too long after the announcement that Percy had been made Head Boy, Fred made a comment that irritated Mrs. Weasley. She began yelling something about being a better example for Ginny.

"Please stop," Ginny begged silently. "I don't need an example for me. I'm not three years old." Then she realized to everyone there, Harry included, she probably was a good as. She didn't prove anything last year when she was dumb enough to write in the diary and then needed Harry to come and save her. Percy soon went upstairs to change for dinner. As everyone also dispersed, Ginny took a moment to get a good look at Harry. He looked relatively the same, except taller, same messy hair, same glasses, same amazing eyes—still handsome, and older.

Once in her room Ginny thought about her encounter with Harry again. It was sad compared to how she planned it, but it was still something. And it made sense. Hello was a proper greeting. It wasn't like she said something strange like "pumpkins," or, "quaffle." She managed to say something right. It could only get better, right? Soon she might be able to speak to him while looking him in the eye. If she was feeling brave, she might even sit in his train compartment on the way to school.


	4. Chapter 4

The bolded words are taken from Harry Potter and the Goblet o Fire.

Every First Time

A Second Chance at the Burrow

"That must be them," said Hermione. She and Ginny were in the sitting room when they heard a crashing noise come from the kitchen. Mrs. Weasley had just entered the kitchen and Ginny and Hermione had followed. Mr. Weasley, Fred, George, Ron, and Harry had returned from Harry's aunt and uncle's house. Harry was standing near the fire. His eyes went to Hermione and Ginny. Hermione smiled at him and Ginny, with surprisingly little effort, found herself doing the same. Then, something happened for which Ginny wasn't prepared. Harry smiled back. Her face flushed bright red. Her mother was asking her father about something that Fred and George did, presuming it had something to do with Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes.

"**Why don't you show Harry where he's sleeping, Ron?"** suggested Hermione, obviously wanting to clear the kitchen before having to witness the wrath of Mrs. Weasley on Fred and George.

"**He knows where he's sleeping,"** replied Ron, **"in my room, he slept there last-"** Ron's voice faded. He seemed to be catching on.

"**We can all go," said Hermione pointedly.**

"**Oh," said Ron, cottoning on. "Right." **Ginny smiled to herself. Hermione was nice to have suggested she go too. Ron would have never thought to ask her to come. George tried to join them, but Mrs. Weasley stopped him. Ginny, Hermione, Ron, and Harry were able to get out of the kitchen before anything worse happened.

"**What are Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes?" Harry asked as they climbed** the stairs. Ginny couldn't help, but laugh thinking about it. Ron laughed too. Hermione, however, didn't seem amused.

"**Mum found this stack of order forms when she was cleaning Fred and George's room," said Ron quietly. "Great long price lists for stuff they've invented. Joke stuff, you know. Fake wands and trick sweets, loads of stuff. It was brilliant, I never knew they'd been inventing all that…"**

"**We've been hearing explosions out of their room for ages, but we never thought they were actually making things,"** Ginny added, surprising herself that she actually spoke without humiliating herself. **"We just thought they liked the noise." **As they continued climbing the stairs she and Ron kept explaining the big arguments that took place concerning the twins, Mrs. Weasley, and Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes.

As they walked past Percy's bedroom, he poked his head out the door. He greeted Harry; however, he was kind of rude making comments about all of them making comments about the noise they were making. **"What are you working on?" said Harry.** He could still be kind and act interested in what Percy was doing. Anyone else would have ignored him. Percy droned on about cauldron thickness, until Ron made a comment that slightly embarrassed him. After a final statement, he slammed his door and Ginny, Ron, Harry, and Hermione were free to go upstairs.

They reached Ron's room. Ron had barely stepped inside when he told his owl to shut up.

"**Er-why are you calling that owl Pig?" Harry asked Ron.**

"**Because he's being stupid," said Ginny, "Its proper name is Pigwidgeon." **Ginny surprised herself yet again.

"**Yeah, and that's not a stupid name at all," said Ron sarcastically. "Ginny named him," he explained to Harry**, much to Ginny's anger. Now Ron was trying to make her sound dumb. He was such an idiot some times. **"She reckons it's sweet. And I tried to change it, but it was too late," he** continued. Ginny smiled triumphantly. **"But it was too late, he won't answer to anything else. So now he's Pig. I've got to keep him up here because he annoys Errol and Hermes. He annoys me too, come to that."**

The conversation went from Pigwidgeon, to Crookshanks, to Percy's obsession with work, and to Harry's summer which seemed awful. He said the cakes Hermione sent him saved his life. Ginny thought it must have been awful to live where he lived.

"And have you heard from-?" Ron started to speak, but suddenly stopped. Ginny noticed he was looking at Hermione, who in turn was giving him a look. _Why'd she stop him from talking?_ Everyone was silent, Harry, Ron, and Hermione stealing glances of each other. They all knew something and they clearly weren't up for sharing. "Great," Ginny thought, "I'm just the annoying little sister again."

"**I think they've stopped arguing," said Hermione. "Shall we go down and help your mum with dinner?"**

"Yeah, all right," said Ron. He led the way out of his room, followed by Hermione, then Harry, then Ginny. As they walked down the stairs, Ginny couldn't help, but smile. Sure, apparently she was still the annoying little sister, but she talked to him. She actually talked to him without sounding shy or stupid. It was a severe improvement compared to how she acted the last time he had stayed at the Burrow. And now they had the whole Quidditch World Cup together, well sort of. She was sure she would find the courage to speak to him again. There was hope for her yet. 


	5. Chapter 5

Please review if you get the chance! Thank you!

Bolded words and phrases are taken from _Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix_ Chapter 4, "Number Twelve Grimmauld Place."

Every First Time

Percy, Snape, and Dumgbombs

Ginny heard footsteps outside her room. _Could he be here?_ Tonight was the night the Advanced Guard was going to get Harry from his aunt and uncle's house and bring him to Grimmauld Place. Since the rest of the children were banished to their rooms while the Order meeting took place and there would be no reason for any of the adults to come upstairs, it had to be someone leading Harry to his room. _She should go and say hello…no. No, she wouldn't. She would wait. She'd see him eventually._ Truthfully, Ginny wanted nothing more than to catch him on the stairs and be the first one to see him, but, after a recent heart-to-heart with Hermione, she decided to let her very obvious feelings toward Harry die down a bit. Hermione had been around to watch Harry and Ginny's interactions and was able to see that Harry didn't seem to show the same type of interest in Ginny as Ginny did in Harry. She proposed to a disheartened Ginny that perhaps this was because Ginny was so open with her feelings, even if she didn't want to be, that perhaps it scared Harry off—he really didn't get to know the real Ginny. She suggested that Ginny try to calm down and be more of herself around Harry and maybe everything would work out the way Ginny had always wanted to work out. She heard a door close. _He was probably inside his room or with Ron and Hermione. Maybe she would just wait to see him at dinner. Would that be too disinterested though? _

Not too long after Ginny knew Harry was in his room, she heard him talking, very loudly and angrily. He was practically yelling. _What was going on? Why was he so angry?_ Ginny decided now was a better time than ever to go see him. It wasn't even about just getting to talk to him. She wanted to know what was upsetting him so much. She climbed off her bed and headed for the door. Checking herself in the mirror, she smoothed down her hair. "No," she thought shaking her head to tousle it a bit. Harry was going to see the real her. The real her never fiddled with her hair.

Paces away from Harry and Ron's room, Ginny could hear Fred and George who must have come to see what all the fuss was about too. She heard a mention of Extendable Ears.

"**It's worth the risk, that's a major meeting they're having," said Fred.**

Ginny opened the door to see Harry, Ron, Fred, George, and Hermione inside.  
><strong>"Oh, hello, Harry!" <strong>she said trying to sound cheery, **"I thought I heard your voice."** After her greeting, she immediately turned to George saying, **"It's no-go with the Extendable Ears, she's gone and put an Imperturbable Charm on the kitchen door."**

"**'How d'you know?"said George, looking crestfallen.**  
><strong>"Tonks told me how to find out,' said Ginny. "You just chuck stuff at the door and if it can't make contact the door's been Imperturbed. I've been flicking Dungbombs at it from the top of the stairs and they just soar away from it, so there's no way the Extendable Ears will be able to get under the gap."<strong>

Fred then expressed his desire to know what had Snape had been up to. Ginny was not at all shocked, when Harry appeared very upset about it. She knew he hated Snape. George decided to sit down on the bed. Fred and Ginny, who was now solely interested in the conversation, followed. Hermione, as usual, tried to be practical and explained that Snape was on their side now. Ron of course argued.

"**Bill doesn't like him either,"** Ginny added matter-of-factly. She probably held Bill's opinion higher than all of her brothers. In fact most of the Weasley children felt the same way. The conversation then switched to Bill and his new position at Gringotts. And of course, Phlegm Delacour was brought into the conversation.  
><strong>"-and Bill's been giving her a lot of private lessons," sniggered Fred.<strong> Ginny grimaced. Just the thought of Bill snogging Phlegm made her want to vomit.

"**Couldn't Percy do that?"** Harry's question about Percy contacting connections to join the Order took Ginny out of her thoughts of disgust. It had been a while since anyone had said that name. She e_x_changed looks with her brothers. Just thinking of Percy made Ginny so angry. She could feel her face reddening as Ron and Fred warned Harry not to mention him around their parents.

"**It's been awful," **she **said sadly.** She hated seeing her parents being so upset. Their family had always been so close and now, though everyone else was still together, it seemed so different.

Ron, Fred, and George took turns explaining the story to Harry whose shock expression increased with every new detail.

"**But Percy must know Voldemort's back,' said Harry slowly. 'He's not stupid, he must know your mum and dad wouldn't risk everything without proof—"**

"**Yeah, well, your name got dragged into the row,' said Ron, shooting Harry a furtive look. 'Percy said the only evidence was your word and ... I dunno ... he didn't think it was good enough."** Ginny stole a glance at Harry. She had a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. Harry was practically a part of their family and having Percy not believe him, she imaged, was like having a brother not believe him. Hermione then began her rapid, lecture-like explanation of the _Daily Prophet_'s attacks on Harry.

"**Well, they're writing about you as though you're this deluded, attention-seeking person who thinks he's a great tragic hero or something," **she said, **very fast, as though it would be less unpleasant for Harry to hear these facts quickly. 'They keep slipping in snide comments about you. If some far-fetched story appears, they say something like, "A tale worthy of Harry Potter", and if anyone has a funny accident or anything it's, "Let's hope he hasn't got a scar on his forehead or we'll be asked to worship him next"—"**  
><strong>'I don't want anyone to worship-' Harry began hotly.<strong> Ginny winced. She didn't like to see him get angry. Not only did she feel badly, but it was a bit _scary_.  
><strong>"I know you don't,' said Hermione quickly, looking frightened. 'I know, Harry. But you see what they're doing? They want to turn you into someone nobody will believe. Fudge is behind it, I'll bet anything. They want wizards on the street to think you're just some stupid boy who's a bit of a joke, who tells ridiculous tall stories because he loves being famous and wants to keep it going."<strong>  
><strong>"I didn't ask- I didn't want- Voldemort killed my parents!" Harry spluttered. "I got famous because he murdered my family but couldn't kill me! Who wants to be famous for that? Don't they think I'd rather it'd never—"<strong>  
><strong>'We know, Harry,' said Ginny earnestly.<strong> As much as she wanted to seem less interested, she couldn't not say anything. Hearing him talk about his parents…she'd never really heard him say anything about it before. Harry knew they all believed him, but something told Ginny that he just needed to hear someone say it.

They soon got on the subject of the hearing; however, it didn't last long. As soon as footsteps were heard coming up the stairs, Fred and George disapparated. By the time Mrs. Weasley opened the door, they were gone.  
><strong>"The meeting's over, you can come down and have dinner now. Everyone's dying to see you, Harry. And who's left all those Dungbombs outside the kitchen door?"<br>"Crookshanks," answered Ginny unblushingly. "He loves playing with them."  
>"Oh,' said Mrs. Weasley, 'I thought it might have been Kreacher, he keeps doing odd things like that."<strong> Ginny was slightly surprised her mother believed her. She was a convincing liar, but given how much they had been trying to find out about the meeting she thought her mother would have figured it out. **"Now don't forget to keep your voices down in the hall. Ginny, your hands are filthy, what have you been doing? Go and wash them before dinner, please..."**

Ginny made a face and followed her mother out of the room. No need to argue. Plus, her hands were probably filthy. It's impossible to be handling dungbombs and not get your hands dirty. She shut the door behind her, knowing Harry, Ron, and Hermione would probably want some privacy.

As she walked down the hall towards the bathroom, Ginny thought about dinner. She wondered if Snape would stay or if Dumbledore had shown up._ Did anyone hear about Percy? Would they still be talking about it at the table?_ She wanted to sit next to Tonks. She never failed to entertain at the table. _Why couldn't Bill spend time with her?_ She was much better than Phlegm.

While washing her hands, Ginny caught a glimpse of herself in the grimy mirror. Her hair was a little all over the place. It wasn't until then that she remembered stopping herself from fixing it before going to see Harry. She smiled as a feeling of content came over her. She forgot about Harry. She didn't literally forget about him, but she forgot about trying to impress him, forgot how much she liked him. She talked to him without worrying about saying anything stupid. She talked about Percy. She talked about Snape. She talked about dungbombs and she wasn't embarrassed. Maybe being herself around Harry wouldn't be as hard as she thought. Although, the conversation in Ron and Harry's room was not a particularly pleasant one, it was nice that they could all sit together and talk, like friends. She liked that. If she was able to do that in their room, she would certainly be able to do that at dinner, and maybe even at school. Ginny turned off the faucet and took one last look in the mirror. Grinning, she shook her head tussling her hair even more. She liked being herself. 


End file.
